Royal Tease

by Nana Malone

  "Because you’re my cousin. And I never felt right about not being allowed to go to her funeral. So, if I could do something to make your life a little bit easier, then why not?"

  "Thanks, mate. I don't know what to say."

  He shrugged. "No need to say anything. I will tell you though, my guy who goes to clean out there says he's seen your brother there more than once."

  The bottom fell out of my stomach. " Yeah?"

  Ben nodded. "Yeah. Are you planning on seeing him while you're here?"

  No way I was getting into this conversation with Ben right now. I sank my shot and leaned back onto the cue. "The plan was not to see him. And so far, that's my only plan."

  “As plans go, that seems pretty solid to me. But maybe you’ll want answers and change your mind. But then again, that could just be me.”

  Jessa…

  "To girls' night."

  I had no choice. Ariel was looking far too happy and enthusiastic, followed closely by Chloe as they clinked their glasses. "Fine. To girls' night."

  Chloe grinned at me. "You'd think you'd be happier about girls' night. Or are you disappointed that we're not Roone?"

  I rolled my eyes. "I am not disappointed. I don't need a man to make me happy. I am perfectly happy already. Look at me being happy."

  Chloe laughed, and Ariel glanced up as the waiter brought us our first round of appetizers. "What you're seeing is that she's desperate to get back to work right now."

  "I am not. I am enjoying an evening out. With friends. This is me relaxing."

  Chloe mouthed, No it's not.

  "I saw that."

  My friend laughed. "Well, it's true. Although, since Roone showed up, you've certainly looked less stressed. Inquiring minds want to know… Any reason you're less stressed out?" She grinned at me and waggled her eyebrows.

  "No. I have nothing to offer."

  Ariel laughed. "Come on, some of us are in a drought here. Your potential hookups are giving me life right now."

  "There's no reason you're in a drought. If that’s the case, it's by choice."

  She shrugged. "Maybe. What about you, Chloe? How is the app date guy?"

  Chloe beamed. "Oh my God, he's great. Very cute. And our chemistry's scorch-the-sheets off the charts, so I'm not going to complain."

  I raised my glass to Chloe. "Good for you. Enjoy. Have some fun."

  Chloe rolled her eyes. "What about you, though? You deserve fun."

  I couldn't help the flush that crept up my neck. "I have fun." I’d had all kinds of fun over the last couple of days. Roone was... God, how did I end up here? He was all the things I thought I wouldn't want in someone. But for some reason, when he talked to me, all I heard was him, all I saw was him. He had the potential to be dangerous for me. "What about you, Ariel? You must have had some great love affairs at some point?"

  She hesitated and chewed her lip. "Well, there was someone once, but that ended a long time ago."

  Smelling blood in the water, I leaned forward with my drink. "Oh my gosh, do tell. I promise you, it's far more interesting than what's happening with me and Roone right now."

  Ariel raised her brow, telling me full well she didn't believe me. But we would fight that battle another time. "No, not necessarily, but, it's ancient history now."

  Chloe whined. "Oh, come on, tell us."

  Ariel flushed a deep shade of red. "Okay, okay. There was a guy once. Someone I thought would be great. You know, like when you're young, that kind of all-encompassing, all-consuming kind of love. But I wasn't good enough. His family didn't approve. And in the end, he chose them."

  Chloe moaned. "But that's so tragic."

  Ariel shrugged. "Yeah, I guess it was."

  I narrowed my gaze. "There's something you're not telling us. Is there something about this guy we should know? Like is he someone famous?" Sensing blood in the water, I leaned forward some more. "Come on. Tell us."

  Her face went beet red this time, matching her hair.

  "Oh my God. No, he wasn't famous-famous. He just was recognizable. You know, I just... God, I don't even talk about this to my best friend."

  I grinned. "But you know what? We're safe. Because there's no way we would even know who he was."

  Ariel chewed her bottom lip. "Yeah, I guess so. I mean, it seems to ridiculous to even think about it now. But I was in love, you know? Like head over heels, we are going to be together kind of love. Only to discover, that he didn't feel the same way about me."

  "What happened?"

  "We were secretly seeing each other for a while. On what was supposed to be our first public date, he ghosted."

  I lifted my brow. "Was he married? You seem so down to earth. Like you would never do that. I can’t see you putting up with some kind of secret relationship."

  She nodded, her red hair swinging around her shoulders. "Yeah. I know, right? But when we were supposed to meet, he was a no-show. We'd made this whole fabulous plan for the future about how we were going to move abroad and do all this stuff, but instead I ended up going on my own for six months. When I came back, I—" She shifted her gaze around. "Um, I got to work. That's when I got started on the design for Meet Cute. The rest is history."

  "Do you ever see him? Have you seen him? Have you talked to him?"

  "No. At the time, I thought maybe he would try and reach out, but it never happened. And I don't know, I just sort of tucked that one away."

  Chloe shook her head. "But I don't understand. How does your best friend not even know?"

  "Well at the time, she had left for university. And honestly, it was just this summer thing. And now, when I say it out loud, I recognize it sounds insane to plan my whole life based on three fantastic months, right? I was just so embarrassed when it ended that I just never told anyone. I was just mortified that I’d thought someone like that would want someone like me. But I'd really believed it."

  "Just for the record, you're fantastic. I'm sure he's regretting that decision now."

  She shrugged. "I don't know. It would be easy enough to look him up, but I won't be ever doing that. I have no desire to punish myself."

  Chloe took another sip of her wine. "God, I swear, men can be such twats."

  I nodded. "Yeah, they can be." But really, what did I know about it? I don't know what prompted the honesty, but I said, "It’s a bit embarrassing to even say this, but I don't even know what it's like to be in love."

  Chloe laughed. "You're not serious."

  "Yes, I am."

  Ariel shook her head. "But you're beautiful. You're smart. You're driven."

  "I've just never had a chance. My dad had us bouncing us around all over the place when I was a kid, and I went to several different high schools. And then during Uni, I was mostly looking after my dad. I dated some, but like that fall in love kind of thing, get swept away in it all, I've never had that."

  Chloe smiled. "Well, maybe you have it now?"

  I blushed. "I don't know what I have now. What I have now is something dangerous because he is verboten. Evan would fire both of us, and Chloe, he’d fire you for knowing and not saying anything."

  Chloe snorted. "Nah, boss man would only fire Roone because he has a thing for you."

  Ariel laughed. "What? What is this madness?"

  Chloe giggled. "Oh yeah, Evan has had a thing for Jessa since she started at the firm."

  Ariel’s eyes went wide. “Oh really? An office thing?”

  God no. "That's not true. That's Chloe's theory, and not the best theory she's ever had."

  "It's true.” Chloe insisted. “I can tell by the way he watches you. If he looked like Roone, it'd be hotter. But he’s not Roone. So sometimes it’s a little creepy."

  I sniffed. I’d never once been interested in Evan. He’d always just been my mentor. "He’s perfectly fine-looking, handsome even with his dark hair. He works out. But that's not the point. The point is he's my boss, and I also feel absolutely zero there."

  Chloe took another sip of her win
e. "I'm telling you. I still remember when you were hired. We were all in the assistants’ pool together, but he honed right in on you. He’d just lost, what, two assistants in a row? Both quit with no notice. I thought he was coming to make you an assistant. But he took you under his wing and gave you some great shots. You, ever the kind bestie, dragged me with you."

  “I didn’t drag you anywhere. You earned your spot.”

  Ariel chimed in. "You know, I mean, I could see it. He did seem awfully concerned for you at the gala."

  "Oh my God, you're both delusional. The whole point is, I can't even get caught up in this whole Roone thing. It's fun, and he is so unbelievably sexy. But honestly, it's not going anywhere because he makes me crazy, and it’s also way against the rules. I like this job. I need this job. I don't know if it's worth the risk."

  Ariel met my gaze levelly. "Yeah, but isn't all love really just a giant risk? If Roone’s not worth the risk, then who would be?"

  She did have a point there.

  29

  Jessa…

  “Do you plan on telling me where we’re going?”

  “Do you always ask so many questions?”

  I fiddled with the blindfold over my eyes then groaned. “If you plan on chopping me up in little bits and pieces, I will have you know that Chloe knows where I am.”

  He chuckled softly. “I should certainly hope so. I had a little help planning this.”

  “Ugh. There’s a traitor in my midst.”

  “Okay, okay. Calm down. We’re here.” He stopped just behind me and planted a kiss behind my ear.

  When Roone had told me to dress comfortably and dress for fun, I hadn’t known what that meant. I’d donned my petticoat skirt, flat boots, a long-sleeved tee, a hoodie and a jean jacket over that. I had no idea what we were doing, so I’d dressed for London in the fall. All I knew was that we were outside because I could feel the gravel beneath my boots.

  Behind me, Roone fumbled with the blindfold and then separated it. When I blinked my eyes open, I immediately shut them again because the lights were so bright. When I blinked then more cautiously opened them, I gasped. “Oh my God, this is Play Town.”

  He grinned. “Yeah, it is.”

  I whirled around. “Oh my God! This is Play Town!” I shouted again.

  He laughed. “I know. I saw that picture in your flat the day of the break-in. I made some calls. It turned out I know the guy who bought the place and refurbished it. He is planning to eventually turn this into some kind of an adult playground thing. But, in the meantime, welcome to Play Town, your childhood revisited.”

  I squealed with giddy excitement and wrapped my arms around him, giving him a tight bear hug. “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I loved this place when I was a kid.” Play Town sat on the outskirts of Slough. My mother had brought me every year. Almost like a rite of passage.

  With a quick glance around, he took my hand. “Come on, let’s go have some fun.”

  “Oh my God, we’re totally doing the roller coaster first. Oh no, ferris wheel. No, funnel cake.”

  Roone chuckled. “Maybe we’ll save the funnel cake until after we’ve been on rides?”

  “No, funnel cake before the ride is part of the adventure. Can you stomach it? Get it?” I asked with glee.

  “I think we don’t need to risk it.”

  “Okay, maybe not. Especially if you're chicken.”

  “Oh, you did not just call me chicken.”

  “Hey, just calling it how I see it,” I giggled. I’m giggling. Who am I? Had I been kidnapped by pod people? “Seriously though. Thank you. This is incredible. I can’t believe you thought of this.”

  “Yeah well, it’s a date, and judging from those pictures, this place meant something to you, something important. I wanted you to enjoy it.”

  “Roone Ainsley, you are something else. This wasn’t even a Meet Cute date.”

  He shrugged and tucked his head. “Yeah, the app is great, but I figured I could do pretty well on my own.” I could see this red hue creeping up his neck. “Come on, let’s go get you a funnel cake if you insist.”

  “I didn't know you had this sweet side to you. Hell, I don’t know if anyone has ever been this sweet to me.”

  “Well, it seems that maybe you’ve been dating assholes. But we’re fixing that now, right?”

  “It would seem that way. This is perfect I love it.”

  We did get funnel cake first. One funnel cake, two forks, and more powdered sugar than could possibly be good for either one of us. As we ate with our fingers and laughed, Roone made me systematically walk the park, picking out which roller coaster I wanted to do first, then second, and third, and which games I wanted to play. By the time we were done with our assessment and our priority order, the funnel cake was long gone and partially digested in our stomachs. So clearly, he did it on purpose. But I hadn’t even realized it because I was so happy.

  At the first roller coaster, he hesitated even as I skipped into the first row of seating. I waited anxiously. “What’s wrong?”

  “Is now a good time to tell you that I don’t really love roller coasters?”

  My heart sank. “What? Everyone loves roller coasters. Is it the height?”

  “No, not the height. It’s just the whole pitching about trying to make your stomach fall out of your mouth thing.”

  “Oh, come on, it will be fun. I’ll hold your hand.” I lowered my voice so that the ride tech couldn’t hear me. “I’ll hold something else if you want.”

  Roone skipped in quickly. “Well, why didn’t you just say so?”

  The safety bars settled over our laps and then the gate was closed. As we lurched forward and started the climb to the first drop, Roone clutched my leg. “I’m not sure this is the best idea I’ve ever had.”

  I put my hand over his and grinned. “It’s going to be fun.”

  He leaned over and kissed me, lingering softly over my lips before we fell.

  An hour later, we’d ridden all of the roller coasters twice, and then played a couple of the games. Apparently, when it came to the drag racing, Roone was not taking it easy on me. He was in it to win it, and he did win… twice.

  “You were cheating,” I grumbled.

  “Don’t be salty.”

  “I’m not being salty. I’m just saying that this is my special date and you’re the one who won the giant giraffe.”

  “If you’re nice, I’ll let you cuddle with it tonight if it’ll make you feel better.”

  I glowered at him. “No, it does not make me feel better. That giraffe should be mine."

  He shrugged. “Next time, win it.”

  I shook my head and laughed. “You’re such a dead man.”

  “Oi! Love, don’t hate the player, hate the game. If you want something bad enough, suck it up and work for it.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “Oh, I’ll show you working for it.” I reached for him to give him a pinch, and he quickly evaded my grasp, instead turning me around and kissing into my neck.

  “You smell fucking incredible do you know that? I could live right fucking here.”

  “That can probably be arranged.”

  “In that case, my job is done. One last ride then we’ll call it a night. And if you’re nice, I’ll even let you name the giraffe.”

  “Well that’s easy. His name is Stretch.”

  “Stretch?”

  “Yeah. I had a toy giraffe when I was a kid. That was his name. It seems like a good name as any.”

  “But don’t you want some other name?”

  “Okay, in that case, his name is Stretch Two.”

  He chuckled low. “Completely rational.”

  “Always.”

  He reached for me, kissing me as he swung me around. For one moment I closed my eyes and pretended that I could fall and Roone would catch me. That nothing bad would ever happen to me in my life because this man held me tight.

  You know better than to put that kind of trust in anyone.

&nbs
p; I did know better. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t fun to pretend. When my eyes fluttered open and I glanced up, I froze in his arms.

  “Jessa? What’s wrong?”

  For what must have only been a second but felt like an eon, I couldn't breathe, I couldn’t talk. Instead, I shoved against his shoulder, grabbed the giraffe, then vaulted over the duck shooting booth.

  The kid manning the booth’s eyes went wide, but I placed a finger over my lips and implored him with my eyes to stay quiet. All the while, I looked for a way out. If I was caught, my life was over.

  On the other side of the booth I could just barely see Roone’s face. “Jessa what the—“

  He was interrupted. “Roone, is that you?”

  I knew that voice well. It was the whole reason I was hiding behind the duck shoot. Evan Millston.

  “Hey Evan, how’s it going, mate?” Roone’s voice was perfectly relaxed as if I hadn’t just pulled a Houdini.

  “Uh, it’s fine. What are you doing here?” Suspicion dripped from every word.

  Roone stayed calm though. Even though we’d both likely be fired, he stayed cool. “I had a Meet Cute date. I was supposed to meet her here. But so far she hasn’t shown.”

  “That’s too bad.” Except the way Evan said it, he sounded like he didn’t think it was that bad at all.

  “And you?”

  “Looks like Meet Cute had the same idea. This is Chantal, my date.”

  A feminine voice said, “Nice to meet you.”

  Had Evan seen me? How long would I have to hide here? Pleasantries were exchanged, and then Evan excused himself and his date. I stayed hidden for another few minutes before Roone poked his head over. “You’re clear to come out now.”

  I stood slowly, dragging Stretch with me. “Shit. That was so close.”

  Roone’s jaw was set tight, and his gaze was always on the move. “I know. I’m sorry, but it’s time to go.”

  “Yeah. There’d be no way to explain me being here too. Your explanation was shaky enough.”

  “Yeah well, let’s just say I’m not exactly buying his explanation either.”

  “Why not? What other reason could he have for being here?”